


short-circuit my identity

by orphan_account



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Persona 4, Characters to be added, Murder Mystery, Other, persona 4 au, spoilers for p4 obviously, you don't need to know persona 4 to read this!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-15
Updated: 2019-01-15
Packaged: 2019-10-10 20:32:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17433038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: with his parents working abroad, qian kun is sent to the sleepy countryside town of inaba to stay with his uncle and cousin for one year. inaba, a town so small the biggest attraction is a department store. naturally, kun thinks this is going to be the most boring year of his life.within twenty-four hours of his arrival, a dead body is found hanging from a telephone wire.and that's just the tip of the iceberg.





	1. prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> she waits.

the second has recently been awakened. 

he’s a dull one, cracking around the edges. there’s not much there anymore. she shakes his hand and looks into her eyes and it’s a depth as dark as nyx, maybe even deeper.

he’s textbook. perfect. the ideal choice.

the first awakened is already well on his way. he’s a born natural, and there’s a sickly thrill that races through her when she watches him perform. he’s rotting from the inside out, the flies of evil have started to gather, and he’s cutting himself open and letting them gorge on his ruins.

the third is not yet here.

she’s almost too impatient to stand it. she almost wants to go for the first person she can. just wants to do something, anything. 

but this one is special. this one is… different.

so she bides her time. smiling and waving and helping and wasting away. the fog isn’t quite there yet, rolling in every so often. but she soaks it in, lets it fill her through and through. it helps with the waiting, at the least.

cause that’s all she can do. wait.

but she’s grown quite good at it over the years. had all the time in the world to wait.

she’s always been hungry for knowledge but now? now she’s positively _ravenous._

but all she can do is wait.

and the days pass in inaba, the fog kept just barely at bay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am!!! so excited to write this!!!! persona 4 is something that literally shaped me into who i am today, and when recently revisiting my favourite youtuber's playthrough, i felt the desperate need to write this. so here we are!!
> 
> this fic is going to be following the same plot line that the persona 4 anime did! one chapter per episode, and i'm going to be trying to cover all the contents within a couple thousand words! there may be some liberties taken based on characterization and such, but otherwise it'll be pretty true to form. 
> 
> i'm . so unbelievably excited to write this fic aaaa!!!


	2. thou, i, me.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> kun's first four days in inaba are... eventful, to say the least.

**[you’re in a limousine. there’s nothing to see outside. just fog, slowly rolling past the vehicle. it barely shakes with the movement, the drinks in the minibar remain perfectly still, even the glass of water in front of you barely spills a drop. the interior is a royal blue, the seats and the windows and the walls and the ceiling. it feels like you’re drowning, but in the most beautiful way.]**

_“welcome to the velvet room.”_

**[the man in front of you says. his voice is high and reedy, something mystic interwoven in his words he is a peculiar man, with an impossibly long nose, wide and bare teeth, large eyes with beady pupils. he’s in a black suit, perfectly clean, and his gloved hands are clasped, his elbows resting on the table. he unnerves you, not just because of his unusual appearance, but because of the glint in his eye.]**

_”this place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter.”_

**[the man continues. he leans forwards, just the slightest bit, and you find yourself trying to lean back.]**

_“my name is igor, and i am delighted to meet your acquaintance. and this,”_ **[he gestures to the woman next to him.]** _“this is my assistant margaret.”_

**[she’s beautiful, in a cold way. pale skin, white hair, yellow eyes. her face is measured and poised. she wears a dress as blue as the limo around her, as if she’s just as a part of it as the seats are, and when she speaks, her voice is as smooth as the road beneath you.]**

_“i am here to guide you through your journey.”_

**[she says, passively, emotionless. igor coughs, and with a wave of his hand, six cards appear face down on the table. he looks at you, still ever-grinning, and flips the first over.]**

_“the tower, upright position. a terrible catastrophe is imminent._

**[he flips the next card]**

_“the moon, upright position. misfortune at your destination, a great mystery in front of you.”_

**[he looks up, smiling even wider, somehow.]**

_“in the coming days, you will enter into a formal contract with us. you will become one of the room’s many guests, and we are to ensure that your future is not lost.”_

**[the blue edges of the room begin to become black, closing in on igor’s smiling face, wide eyes. you’re frozen, unable to do anything, only able to look at igor’s wide grin, only able to hear his reedy voice when he says]**

_“the journey ahead of you is one i cannot wait to see unfold.”_

**[and all that’s left is black.]**

『』

after almost an hour of just trees, the train finally pulls into inaba station. it’s a blessing, cause it means kun is finally free from the purgatory of fields and gets a change of pace for once. but it’s a curse, because this means that it’s a reality.

it’s not just a bad dream, his parents telling him they’d be gone for a work trip for-fucking-ever. that he couldn’t stay at home by himself. that he’d have to move away from all his friends and his job and his school and the city, full of energy and life and everything he’s ever known.

no, this is _really_ happening. kun is actually packing up and moving all the way out here, to the small town of inaba for a full year. he’s moving _here,_ where the most exciting attracting is a fucking supermarket, and you could sprint from one end of the town to the other in sixty seconds flat. he’s moving in with his deadbeat detective uncle and his emotionally deprived nephew, living in their guest bedroom, for one fucking year. 

the announcer’s voice sounds over the intercom, and kun sighs, picking up his bags and shuffling out of the vehicle. might as well face the fucking music.

『』

so, it’s okay, at first.

his uncle is nice, if a little bit surly. he tells kun to just call him “zhong”, which is a little weird, but kun’s not gonna fight him. his little cousin, chenle, soft cheeks and bright eyes, is downright adorable. he takes legitimate _delight_ in a supermarket jingle, and sings “everyday’s great at your junes!” with such glee kun almost fucking _cries._

then they get to the gas station. it’s a normal gas station. the attendant is friendly enough, welcoming kun with a warm smile and shaking his hand with surprising strength. but _then_ kun nearly passes the fuck out, which is all fine and dandy, but then when they settle down to eat dinner at home zhong makes about two minutes of small talk and then just. fucking leaves.

“dad’s always busy like this.” chenle pouts, poking at his convenience store bulgogi. kun doesn’t want to be having this conversation.

so kun retires to bed early, packs his stuff, lays on the futon. stares at the ceiling. _this is it._ he thinks to himself. a little mournful. a little resigned. _one full year of this, huh._

and then kun rolls over and goes to sleep. 

and _then_ kun has this weird ass fuckin’ dream. and boy, it is weird as _fuck._

he’s stumbling through this fog, thick that it almost clogs his throat. he’s got a sword in his hand and a weight in his chest that feels powerful, unlike anything he’s ever felt before. it’s a dream but the sword has a heft to it, too real to be something in his mind. it’s like he’s dreaming in hd, and a small part of kun wonders if it’s even a dream at all.

he creeps his way through the fog, this voice booming through the air, monologuing about truth and deception and wild cards and some other mysterious sounding bullshit that kun doesn’t really process. he’s fighting, calling upon that weight with the clenching of his fist, and attacking this shadowy figure again and again and _again._

none of the attacks land. it’s honestly an underwhelming experience made absolutely suffocating by the sheer confusion of it all, and in the end kun just. passes out. in his dream.

kun awakes, sprawled on the ground, his blankets strewn around him, and the only thing he thinks is _god fucking damn it inaba._

『』

school is weird.

on the way there, some kid eats _shit_ on his bike, slamming into a lamp post, collapsing to the ground into a sad puddle of man. “ah fuck.” he gasps, writhing in pain. “oh, sweet mother of god.” 

kun very daintily steps around him, keeping himself neatly contained within his own umbrella and his own lane, and keeps walking.

he gets to school, and it turns out that nothing is good in this world. his teacher is a fucking cunt and a half, calling him a sad sack of shit and calling him a sleazy dirtbag. in front of the _entire_ fucking class. 

kun plops down into his chair, smushing his face against the table. the boy next to him snorts. “mood.” he says amicably. he extends a hand. “i’m ten. welcome to inaba, city slicker.”

kun sighs, taking the hand offered. he might as well make some friends.

『』

at lunch, the intercom goes off, announcing that due to some mysterious incident, they all get to go home. the cheers in the classroom are deafening. kun thanks any available god and packs his bags quickly, but there’s a hand on his arm.

“come on!” ten says cheerfully. “let me introduce you to my friends!” 

ten’s grip is insanely strong for someone his size. kun is forced to comply, allowing ten to drag him away.

there’s sicheng, the dark haired boy who sits in the row in front of them, the boy who smiles like a porcelain doll, who’s next in line to inherit his family’s inn. he says about three words in the whole conversation, keeps his eyes trained on his feet, and almost melts into his red cardigan. the other boy is johnny, approximately seven feet tall and the embodiment of dorky, the same unfortunate soul who crashed his bike earlier that morning. 

“he’s alright.” ten says teasingly, ducking away from yosuke’s jab. “he moved from the city a couple months ago! his dad runs that big new department store, junes, you know the one.”

kun thinks it’s impossible to be unaware of junes, as the store is visible from nearly anywhere in the town. also, chenle doesn’t stop fucking singing that jingle, but that’s beside the point.

but ten’s gaze turns murderous, and he whirls around, glaring up at johnny. “he _also_ borrowed a movie from me two weeks ago, and _still_ hasn’t given it back!”

johnny winces. “about that…” he says, gingerly reaching into his bag. he pulls out a dvd case, and hands it to ten. he holds himself like he’s preparing for a fucking tsunami.

ten opens the dvd case, closes his eyes, exhales, and closes it. he very carefully puts it down on the table, and opens his eyes. a genuine _chill_ races down kun’s spine, because ten’s eyes are black, fiery, filled with rage. 

“DICKHEAD.” ten roars, whirling around, roundhouse kicking johnny in the crotch, absolutely obliterating the man. “YOU BROKE MY FUCKING TRIAL OF THE DRAGON DVD.”

sicheng sighs. “ten, let’s just go…” he murmurs, and ten straightens, shooting daggers at johnny’s limp body on the floor, and storms out. sicheng picks up the dvd and follows him.

kun takes one look at johnny’s body, and quickly leaves.

『』

on their way home, they discover that the reason school got out early was because someone fucking died. so that’s fun.

they accidentally stumble upon the investigation scene on the way home, drawn over by the flashing lights and crowd of murmuring people.

“oh shit.” ten mutters, on his tiptoes.

“who was it?” sicheng murmurs, mostly to himself. they’re at the edges of the crowd, too far to see anything, but a housewife turns to look at them. 

“im yoona.” she stage whispers. there’s a glint in her eyes that unsettles kun’s stomach just the slightest bit. “sehun oh, the liquor store boy, he found the body.”

“oh.” sicheng says faintly. his knuckles are white around the straps of his backpack. “thanks for letting us know.”

kun frowns. im yoona isn’t a foreign name, especially not recently. she announced the eight o’clock news until she made it herself, caught in bed with rising politician kwon jiyoung. there were rumours that she took paid leave and ran to inaba, trying to escape the media. 

well. the rumours were true. 

“hey.” a voice in the crowd. kun looks up, meets the eyes of his uncle. he looks tired, stubble clear, eyes bagged. “what are you kids doing here.”

ten staggers back. “nothing!” he squeaks. “we were walking home, and we saw everything happening, and we were just… curious…”

“you’ve seen everything there is.” zhong says. “get home, we still got work to do.”

another body emerges from the crowd. the man staggers to the side, bends over, retches loudly, and blows chunks into the grass. “fuck.” he moans, lowering himself shakily to his knees. “fuck, why’d i become a detective?”

zhong’s eyes are glazed over with defeat. he sighs, pressing his fingers to his temples. “just. go home.” he says, then whirls around, barking “TAEIL! HURRY UP AND GET BACK TO WORK.”

“yes sir…” the poor detective wails.

ten bounces on his heels. “so. this is neat.” he says, and then turns and leaves. kun and sicheng look at each other, and follow him.

『』

the next day, after school, kun participates in extortion.

“this is not what i asked for.” ten sniffs, poking at the kebab on his plate. “i wanted high quality thai food. not whatever…” his face scrunches with disdain. _”this_ is.”

johnny slumps in his chair. “i’m broke.” he states outright. “i can barely afford this, even though sicheng isn’t even here! it’s either junes food, or nothing.”

“you couldn’t even get us _good_ junes food?” ten whines.

“hey, i’m the manager’s son. not the ceo.” johnny snips back, and his tone is final. ten kicks him under the table, _hard,_ if johnny’s pained yelp is anything to go by. but nevertheless, he digs in, smiling wide.

“oh _fuck_ i love beef.” he outright moans, far too sexually for a teenager in a department store. a passing mother gives them a weird look, and gives their table a wide berth.

johnny catches kun’s eye, grinning easily. “eat up!” he says, waving at the plate of skewers. “consider this a treat, from one city kid from another.”

kun does as he’s told, digging in. the meat is tough as _fuck,_ and he basically has to wrestle with it to even get it off the skewer. he looks up at ten, to see if he’s having the same problem, and nearly inhales the entire meat stick when he sees ten’s plate clean, like there was never even food on it in the first place. 

“that was good.” he sighs dreamily. “aw man, thanks johnny!”

johnny snorts. “it’s not like i had a choice.” he mutters, but it’s all in good fun. but then he glances to the right, for just barely a moment, but his entire face lights up. he rockets to his feet, grinning widely and waving at a tall boy.

“sehun-sunbaenim!” he shouts. kun shoots a curious glance at ten, who just rolls his eyes back.  
_“watch this.”_ ten mouths.

the boy johnny was waving at walks over. he’s tall, dark handsome, with a kind of stern stoic face that kun would instinctively flinch away from. but he smiles ever so slightly, softening his face.

“hey youngho-yah.” he says softly. his voice is deep and measured, and he stands with his hands clasped gently in front of him. “i didn’t know you were working today.”

“i’m not.” johnny laughs sheepishly. the tips of his ears are _red,_ and he’s got this giddy little smile that doesn’t go away even when he whines “ten’s just using me for food.”

“duh.” ten snorts. “you’re the junes-kid, who else would i go for?”

for the smallest second, johnny’s smile wavers, but it comes back in full strength. he turns to kun, gesturing to sehun. “this is oh sehun.” he says brightly. “his dad runs the liquor store! it’s been an inaba staple for decades.”

“i work at junes to pick up some extra money though.” sehun elaborates. “junes really has been changing things up around here.”

there’s something… residual about that sentence, something that leaves an aftertaste in kun’s mouth. but he doesn’t have time to ponder it, too caught up in ten’s excited “wait! you found the body yesterday, right?”

sehun’s mouth twists. “…yeah.” he admits. “i wanted to skip school but then…” he lets out a shaky sigh.

johnny lifts his hand hesitantly. it stutters in the air for just a moment, before he places it on sehun’s shoulder. “i’m sorry you had to go through that.” he says, and it’s so genuine that kun can’t look at them. “try and head home early, okay?”

sehun smiles, and shuffles back. “i’m actually heading out now.” he sweeps his hair back with a hand, and kun watches johnny’s eyes track the movement. “i’ve got to go down to the station anyways.” he bows politely to kun, smiles and waves at johnny and ten. “see you guys around?”

“b-bye!” johnny shouts, waving with just a bit too much enthusiasm to someone not that far away. he stops waving when sehun’s close to the exit, keeps his hand in the air until he walks out the doors. 

then he collapses into his chair, with a loud and breathy _“fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck.”_

“have you heard of the midnight channel?” ten interjects, leaning forwards in his seat.

johnny glares. “i am _literally_ having a romantic crisis.” he hisses.

ten throws a napkin. “it’s related!” he insists, and then turns to them with a glint in his eyes. “apparently, if you look at a tv on a rainy night when the power is off, you see your one true soulmate in the tv?”

that stops johnny’s whining, who freezes in place, mouth falling open, turning about six shades of red in four seconds. 

“oh.” he says, quite small. no one has to ask what he’s thinking.

ten turns his gaze to kun. “so.” he says, with the utmost confidence.

kun literally has nothing to lose. why the fuck not.

『』

kun watches the tv. it’s an older one, the one that zhong hasn’t sold yet. he said that kun could use it during his stay, and that he’s much too busy to sell it himself.

for once, the forecast was correct, and rain is pouring outside kun’s window. _pathetic fallacy,_ kun’s brain supplies, and he doesn’t even wanna know what’s to come with that kind of premise.

the clock on the wall strikes midnight. and for a moment, nothing happens.

but then the tv flickers to life. all static. there’s a vague figure, broad shouldered and tall, but held like they’re closed in on themselves. holding something close to their chest.

oh sehun. kun doesn’t know how johnny’s going to react to this information, but he has half a mind to skip school the next day. 

it’s over quickly, and then kun’s left staring at a blank tv screen at midnight while the rain pours outside. _stupid._ he thinks, because it happened but for what. nothing really.

but then there’s this thunder that crashes and kun’s falling to his knees, choking on a scream as pain explodes through his head. his vision is whiting out, gagging on the agony, drooling onto the floor as a deep voice explodes through his very being. kun moans, low and gruelling, as something in his stomach clicks into place and the pain subsides, fading in pulsing waves, echoing through his core.

kun pants shallowly. he feels like he’s been shackled by the neck, had a ball and chain strapped to his ankle. but also like he’s been righted, like a puzzle piece has finally fallen into place, like the last screw has been twisted in. 

he also, for some reason, really just wants to fuckin. slap his hand on the tv.

and so he rises on shaky legs, stumbles towards the tv, and reaches out a trembling hand. he pauses, for just a moment, and it feels like he’s on the edge of a high dive. like his toes are all the way off, balanced on his heels, and the slightest breeze will knock him over and send him plummeting down.

_what the fuck._ he thinks, and smacks his hand on the tv screen.

it ripples under his touch.

kun’s eyes widen, he begins to stagger back, but the tv _sucks him in._ kun jerks forwards with a yelp, going head first in, and what the fuck what the _fuckkkkkkkk._

kun yanks himself back, falling on his ass, cracking his head on the small table in the centre of the room. he lies there, chest heaving, head throbbing, mouth dry, nausea still swirling in his gut.

kun exhales. _fuck_ inaba.

『』

the next morning, on the way to school, johnny is ecstatic to reveal that he saw sehun on the tv the night before. he is slightly less ecstatic to hear that ten _also_ saw sehun on the tv.

he’s positively miserable when kun says that he too saw sehun, but all his previous joy comes back in full force when kun emphatically tells him about how his tv tried to fucking _eat him_ last night.

they have to stop walking because johnny and ten are doubled over, crying with laughter. “are you serious!” ten wheezes. “what the _fuck?”_

kun scowls. he’s telling the truth, and he fucking says so, but all it does is make them laugh harder. 

“bro, i can’t believe your tv tried to fuckin’ vore you.” johnny chokes out, and kun turns on his heel and storms off.

they don’t stop teasing him for the whole day, keep harping on it. johnny passes kun a note with a badly drawn tv with big teeth, swallowing a man. ‘i’m hungee!’ the tv shouts. kun throws the note back to johnny, because he can’t shove the paper down johnny’s throat.

he tries to tell them at lunch that it’s legit, that he’s _not_ lying, but they just. don’t. stop. eventually, after kun has insisted for the nth time that he’s not fucking crazy, ten turns to him, grinning wickedly, and says, “prove it.”

and oh he _will_ motherfucker.

sicheng floats away to the inn after the last bell, and kun drags ten and johnny to junes with a sort of determination he’s never felt before. they keep snickering all the way until the electronics isle, where kun stops them in front of the largest flat screen they have.

“okay copperfield.” johnny snorts. “do your magic.”

so kun walks up to the tv. turns to face them. raises a hand and just. sticks it in the tv. 

the look on their faces is something he will treasure for _years._

“what the fuck.” johnny wheezes. “what the actual _fuck.”_

ten can’t even say anything, just staring slack jawed and wide eyed. he looks like he might pass out.

“i’m gonna fucking piss my pants.” johnny whisper shouts. kun stares at him. “this is too much!!” he whisper shrieks, jumping in place.

“our new flat screen led’s are just this way ma’am.” a voice announces in the distance. they all freeze.

“kun.” ten says, very serious. “take your hand out.”

and. kun should. logically. but now he’s _curious,_ now he’s leaning in, dipping his head in willingly. the panicked shouts of his friends become muffled, like they’re underwater, but kun focuses on the world beneath him. he couldn’t see it the night before, what with the excruciating pain and the panic and all, but it’s not like he’s missing out on much.

it’s fog. all of it. a wide and endless expanse of fog, bathed in yellow lights. it’s so thick kun feels like he has to hold his breath, and he looks out into this… this other world, and it’s only then he wonders if he’s gotten himself into something far beyond him.

he doesn’t get the chance to ponder it though. because then there’s weight against him, and he’s being pushed forwards and he barely has the time to shout before he’s plummeting through the air, johnny and ten right behind him, screaming all the way down.

『』

the landing is. fine. it’s okay, and kun gets up with only the smallest bit of pain. ten springs up with startling reflexes. further away, johnny groans, and rolls over.

“what the fuck.” he says, defeatedly. despite his small vocabulary, it’s descriptive. kun says as much, and johnny can only flip him off.

“where… are we?” ten breathes, and it’s only then that kun really looks around. the platform they landed on is like if a dock and a wrestling ring had a baby. metal scaffolding climbs up the sides, the floor is red and yellow patterned, but it rocks like they’re floating, and kun has to brace himself to stay still.

“where ever this is, i want to leave now.” johnny mutters, dragging himself to his feet. “my need to leak is up thirty percent right now.”

ten wrinkles his nose. “gross.” he says, rightfully so, but they continue into the fog without another word.

it’s slow moving. they can barely see past their nose, and they clutch onto each others arms, shuffling forwards, inch by inch. ten is dancing in place, wanting to dart ahead, but kun keeps his grip _firm._ johnny is also dancing in place, but for a different reason that kun doesn’t really wanna address.

“there’s a door!” johnny gasps suddenly, pointing to the distance. “or… something.”

they edge towards it and. well. johnny’s kind of right. there’s a door frame, but where a door normally is, there’s a swirling mass of red and black, hypnotic and deadly. kun swallows, mouth dry.

they all look at each other. ten shrugs. “what else can we do?” he says, and so they step inside.

and inside is…

johnny tenses. “what the fuck.” he breathes, horrified and awed all at once.

it’s a bedroom. but one that makes kun’s stomach churn. the walls are a sickly green, pasted full of newspaper clippings. faces slashed out, ripped and torn. the bed is almost decaying, the legs collapsing beneath its weight, the mattress damn near shredded. there’s an air of sheer despair that coats kun’s tongue and rests on his shoulders.

and in the centre of the room, a noose hangs from the ceiling, and a chair is upturned beneath it.

ten wets his lips. “jesus.” he mutters, grip tightening on kun’s arm.

johnny inhales. “i’m. gonna pee.” he rushes out, taking his arm out of kun’s grip and fumbling with his belt. 

kun and ten physically recoil, staggering away from him. “if you piss in the noose room while i am also inside then i swear to god i will _eradicate_ your testicles, don’t even try me seo.”

johnny looks at them desperately. “then what do i do!?” he pleads.

ten splutters. “i dunno??” he says, waving his arms. he’s still holding onto kun’s arms, so by extension, he’s waving kun’s arms too. “go outside!”

kun thinks that’s not a very good idea. but johnny’s rushing out the door before he can say anything. kun blinks, then turns to ten and suggest that hey, maybe this is not a very good idea.

but before he can open his mouth, there’s a loud scream from outside. “WHAT THE FUCKKKKK” johnny shrieks, and ten and kun look at each other, then rush out the door.

『』

outside the door, a large floppy ear dog costume is waiting for them.

ten sighs. _“that’s_ what you were scared of?” he sighs. 

the suit moves. “you can’t stay here.” it says with urgency. its voice is soft, sweet, but desperate and panicked. details kun might’ve focused on, if it weren’t for the fact that the suit _fucking talked._

they all scream. the suit flinches, waving it’s hands(paws?) at them. “keep it down!” it hisses. “you’re in danger here, you need to go home!”

“how?!” johnny snaps back. “we can barely see, and we have no idea how to even get out of here in the first place.”

the giant floppy dog mascot suit frowns. “fuck.” it says. it’s incredibly jarring. “i just made these, oh, i don’t wanna give them away but…”

kun fumbles the pair of glasses thrust into his hands. “take them!” the dog suit insists. “they help you see through the fog!”

kun puts them on, and it’s like it’s clear as day. he doesn’t have time to marvel at the feat, because the dog suit thing is manhandling all of them. “now hurry!” it insists. “get back to the entrance, i can make you a way to get out but we have to _go!”_

“why!? johnny demands, thrashing in place. “what the hell is even happening, who the fuck even are you??”

“i’m woo.” the suit says. “and you just need to—“

and then, from behind the buildings, now so suddenly clear, a pile of black sludge begins to ooze out. no one else notices, too busy quarrelling and squabbling, but kun watches with wide eyes as it congeals and throbs and forms and it comes _alive—_

it solidifies, floating into the air, a black and white striped ball. it hovers, for just a moment, and then it rolls, baring a smiling mouth, a pink tongue rolling out.

very distantly, kun thinks of the shitty monster tv johnny drew earlier, as fear settles in his stomach.

it rushes towards them, knocking them all onto the ground, circling overhead as three more join them. johnny shouts a curse, barely rolling out of the way as one of them shoots a gust of wind in his direction. it keeps travelling, hitting a building, cutting through the concrete.

everyone’s yelling, attacks flying through the air, and kun sits there, on his ass, frozen. he can’t move, can’t breathe, can’t _think,_ and panic climbs in his throat, drowning his senses, and he—

**[a room steeped in blue. a man smiling, bright and mischievous. the third card flips over.]**

_“the fool.”_

**[he says.}**

_**i am thou—**_

johnny has pushed ten to the ground, herding them away—

_**thou art i—**_

woo is shouting, trying to draw the monster’s attention—

**[eyes, beady and glinting. a hand outstretched, holding a card, the fool, an offering.]**

kun reaches forwards and,

oh, _oh,_ it’s rushing in his ears and coursing through his veins, surging through every fibre of his existence. blue flames lick at his heels, and kun _grins,_ feeling sparks ignite the very soul of his being—

with his knees bent and ready—

with his fists clenched and tight—

with his eyes wild with power—

kun opens his mouth and roars,

_”persona!”_

he crushes the card.

the power explodes outwards. surges upwards. solidifies, forms, there’s a metal mask and a sword and a sweeping black cloak and the name is already on his tongue, _izanagi,_ of lightning and power and so unbearably all mighty.

**“come”** izanagi says. it rumbles through kun’s chest. **“use my strength for your own.**

and kun grins, runs forwards, and he _does._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. inaba doesn't sound korean because it isn't! inaba is the fictional japanese town where persona 4 takes place, and i debated between making up a new town or just using inaba, but i elected to use inaba because it was easier for me to write, and also i had no basis from which to create a name for this fictional town.
> 
> 2\. if the velvet room, igor, and margaret don't make sense, don't worry. they never really make sense. i'll do my best to go in depth into their role and their stories in kun's journey, but i am also moderately confused by these velvet schmucks, so be patient.
> 
> 3\. if there's anything you're confused about (because persona is super info heavy) please ask in the comments! i'll do my best to clear up the world and lore using my base knowledge and the power of the wikia

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading! please try not to put spoilers for the game or the show in the comments, as i want this to be as spoiler free of an experience for as many people as possible!!
> 
>  


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